Last year the Atlanta Falcons finished 23rd in total defense, 22nd in passing defense, 15th in rushing defense, 23rd in scoring defense, 28th in red zone defense, and 31st in third down defense. This year the Atlanta Falcons are currently first in total defense, first in passing defense, 16th in rushing defense, 15th in scoring defense, 25th in red zone defense, and sixth in third down defense. What’s been the reason for the dramatic improvement? The Morning Shift told you earlier today.
“The biggest new part of this team is undoubtedly Jeff Ulbrich. The biggest difference from last year to this year for me is undoubtedly Jeff Ulbrich. I don’t think there’s a close second, I mean we’ve talked throughout the week about the defensive rankings and the yards per game and everything else, like he’s completely changed the trajectory of that defense and where it sits right now.” Mike Johnson said
Obviously, your rookies in Jalon Walker, James Pearce Jr., Xavier Watts, and Billy Bowman Jr. all playing well helps, getting good production from free agent acquisitions Divine Deablo and Leonard Floyd helps, and having guys like Jessie Bates III, A.J. Terrell, and Kaden Elliss help, but a big part of the reason all of those guys and the Falcons’ defense as a whole are playing so well is because they have a good and experienced defensive coordinator putting them in position to be successful.
When Ulbrich was first hired, some fans didn’t like the move because they thought it was just an easy re-tread hire for Raheem Morris, but this Falcons “re-tread hire” has the Falcons’ defense ranked number one in total defense, ranked number one in pass defense, and playing at a level they haven’t been at since 2017.